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Sukulwenkosi Dube Plumtree Correspondent
THE school environment will never be the same again for Grade Three pupil Sibongile Tshuma* from Tsukuru Village in Madlambuzi area, Bulilima District.

When the sun rises each morning during the weekdays, the only thing that comes to her mind is the 20KM walk that she has to embark on in order to reach her school, Tsukuru Primary.

The distance is not her main concern but rather, the thick forest that she has to pass through.

Her heart leaps as she thinks of the possible dangers lurking out there. She takes solace in the fact that she will be in the company of her peers as she goes to school and on her way back.

That slight hope gives her the urge to get ready for school in haste. As she heads towards the gate ready to embark on her journey, she stops in her tracks as she recalls that even in the company of her friends, she is still not safe.

“It was during the second term in the month of June. I was walking with a group of friends on our way home from school when we were attacked by a man who was holding a knife. I tried to run but he grabbed me and my sister.

“He told us that he would stab us if we made noise and he ordered me and my sister to undress and lie on the ground. We knew that he was going to rape us but luckily he marched away and told us that he would not feel a thing during the act as we were small kids,” narrates the 10-year-old girl.

She said they stood frightened and watched as he disappeared into the bushes. Sibongile said, in between sobs, they made their way home where their mother was already wailing as she had received a report that her children had been attacked by a knife-wielding rapist.

For Sibongile this tragic incident still haunts her especially when she has to embark on her journey to school. She said she has never felt safe when going to school anymore following that day.

Her experience sounds less frightening compared to that of the Grade 7 pupil from the same school who was recently raped and nearly strangled while on her way to write an examination at school.

Coming from the same village, walking alone through the same bushy area, the girl was attacked by a 24-year-old serial criminal who is also her neighbour, Limukani Sibanda.

He raped her and then attempted to strangle her and left her for dead in the bush. Despite this tragic experience, the girl had to soldier on and write examinations.

Given the experience of these two young girls, it cannot be doubted that pupils, be it boys or girls from Tsukuru Village risk their lives walking long distances to school.

What worsens the situation is that a number of these serial rapists are still walking scot free and they continue to shatter the lives of women and children. The arm of the law has been found wanting in this regard because police have remained two steps behind these serial rapists.

In some instances, the cases of the rapists die a natural death and the urge to bring them to book fades. However, for the girls and women who have been victimised the wound is never healed.

These were the sentiments of a 45-year-old woman, Nobuhle Ndlovu* who was recently raped, beaten up and robbed while on her way to the shops by the same man who attacked the Grade 7 pupil.

“I can never forget the cruel thing this boy did to me. He raped me and left me for dead. When I woke up several hours after he had raped me I was bleeding profusely and my undergarments and skirt had been removed,” said Ndlovu. I wonder what kind of person would rape a severely injured and bleeding person. His arrest will mean a lot to me because he has to be brought to book before he hurts another person but the wound will never heal.”

Ndlovu said she was walking to the shops located about 15 kilometres from her village when she was raped. Her husband said he found her lying half naked on the side of the road after being discovered by other villagers.

He said that she was unconscious and he took it upon himself to cover her body with a cloth.

The husband said he was shaken by the sight of his wife who was lay helplessly and he thought that she had passed away.

“She was in a horrible state and she spent several hours unconscious and I thought she would never regain consciousness. She was severely injured, she had eight deep cuts on the head and some of her flesh had been scrapped off.

Her arms were useless and she was soaked in blood which was still gushing out of her wounds. It is only a demon-possessed person who can do such an evil deed,” he said.

The man said it was only fitting that the man who committed this terrible offence on his wife be sent to prison.

Another villager from Tsukuru village, Luzibo Moyo said their area had had a number of sexual attacks on women and girls who walked through bushy areas.

She said they had to travel about 15 kilometres through a bushy area to reach the nearest water point. She also said the nearest police station was located about 20 kilometres from their village and they had to pass through a bushy area in order to get there.

“Our community is not safe for us because we have to walk long distances to get services. The water point that we rely on is about 15 kilometres away. This makes the area unsafe for women and children,” she said.

Chief Madlambuzi raised concern over the high number of rape cases going on in his area.

He said that most of the victims were primary school pupils and pointed out the need for authorities to create a safe environment for pupils.

Chief Madlambuzi said this problem was not only affecting his area but the whole district as well.

“An area like Madlambuzi where there is a lot of crime, especially rape cases requires close supervision. There is only one police station which serves a wide area and some criminals tend to take advantage of this setting.

“That is why a number of rapists commit offences and are never caught. When the crimes are committed it takes several hours for the police to attend scenes and by that time the culprits would miles away from crime scene,” said Chief Madlambuzi.

He said if pupils would learn at schools close by, it might reduce sexual abuse of children.

He said some parents were not allowing their children to attend school in order to protect them from sexual abuse.

“What kind of community will we have if children are no longer attending school not because of unpaid school fees but because of the long distances they must endure. I really think that some incidents of rape and crime in general can be avoided if a safer environment is created for the community,” said Chief Madlambuzi.

Following the rape of the Grade 7 pupil and the woman from Tsukuru Village school pupils from the area did not attend school for several days out of fear of being attacked by the serial rapist. Women from the village were scared to move around out of fear of being attacked themselves.

*Not their real names.